Nation's First Industrial Talc/Asbestos Verdict
Industrial talc, an open-pit- mined mineral used in ceramic, paint, and paper manufacturing contains lethal, cancer-causing asbestos fibers responsible for a pottery artisan's fatal mesothelioma, a jury ruled November 16, 2006 in the first-ever U.S. verdict connecting industrial talc with asbestos-related cancer.
More than $3 million in compensatory damages were awarded by a Middlesex County Superior Court jury to a New Jersey widow whose husband operated pottery studios in Skillman, Lawrenceville, and Lambertville, New Jersey before contracting the agonizingly painful, always fatal disease.
After a four-week trial the jury rejected claims by R.T. Vanderbilt, Incorporated that talc from its New York State mines contained fibers that may have looked similar to but were not a lethal form of asbestos, a position that the company has maintained for decades.
In the next phase of the trial, punitive damages will be sought against the defendants. It is scheduled to begin November 28. (SOURCE: Insurance News)
